Several Western Balkans states have taken positive steps towards EU integration, but the region will have to work hard for many years before it is ready to join.
The upcoming accession of Croatia, commended for ‘steady progress’, should serve as an example and encourage additional efforts in the Western Balkans to speed up the pace of reform and address long-standing weaknesses.
Meanwhile, concerns abound that the EU’s preoccupation with its huge internal problems, especially regarding the euro’s legitimacy in the face of the threat of economic meltdown in Greece, Ireland and possibly other member states, could further diminish the Union’s enthusiasm for enlargement towards the Balkans.